JP2007107887A - Visual examination device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To always visually examine the surface flaw of a glass substrate to enhance not only the reliability of visual examination but also operability. <P>SOLUTION: This visual examination device 1 is constituted so as to visually examine the flaw of a substrate G and equipped with a substrate holder 2 for holding the substrate, a first rotary mechanism 3 for rotating the substrate holder, a light irradiation means 4 for irradiating the surface of the substrate held on the substrate holder with light L for visual examination, a second rotary mechanism 5 for rotating the whole of or a part of the optical system of the light irradiation means and a control part 6 which respectively controls the operations of both rotary mechanisms and operates either one of the rotary mechanisms to operate the other one of them in connection with the operation of one of the rotary mechanisms to control the postures of the substrate holder and the light irradiation means so that light is turned to an inspect P with respect to the surface G1 of the substrate. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a visual inspection apparatus for visually inspecting whether or not there is a defective portion such as a scratch or unevenness on a glass substrate such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a plasma display panel (PDP).

  Conventionally, as a defect inspection of a glass substrate used for an LCD or the like, a macro that irradiates the surface of the glass substrate with illumination light and visually inspects the glass substrate surface for defects such as scratches from the optical change of the reflected light In general, a method called micro-inspection in which an inspection or a defect portion found in the macro-inspection is enlarged and inspected with a microscope or the like is generally employed.

Various apparatuses for performing the macro inspection apparatus are known (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). However, in any apparatus, the glass substrate to be inspected is arbitrarily swung. It is fixed to a possible rocking holder. Then, when illuminating the surface of the glass substrate and inspecting the defective portion with the reflected light, the rocking holder is raised to an angle where the defects on the glass substrate can be easily seen, and the rocking holder is raised to a predetermined angle. In this state, the swing holder is swung within a minute angle range. By tilting and swinging the swinging holder under illumination light, the angle of light incident on the surface of the glass substrate can be changed, making it easier to find defective parts such as scratches. Yes.
Thus, the glass substrate is held by the swing holder so that the angle of the glass substrate surface can be adjusted to an arbitrary angle with respect to the inspector's line of sight.

  In addition, an illumination device (light beam irradiation angle variable illumination device) that can change the illumination angle of light applied to the glass substrate by tilting the holder holding the glass substrate by suction and changing the rotation angle of the reflection mirror is provided. The thing provided is also known (for example, refer patent document 3). In this case, the light irradiation direction can be changed by changing the rotation angle of the reflection mirror without moving the glass substrate.

Then, the inspector operates the various operation switches of the operation panel held in his / her hand to perform the visual inspection (macro inspection) of the surface of the glass substrate while swinging the reflecting mirror in the uniaxial direction toward the inspector. . Thereby, since light can be applied to the surface of the glass substrate from one direction and the surface of the glass substrate can be visually inspected, the defect portion on the surface of the glass substrate can be macro-inspected in a state in which oversight is minimized.
JP 2003-344294 A JP-A-11-94752 JP-A-10-111253

However, the following problems remain in the conventional visual inspection apparatus.
That is, when performing the macro inspection, the inspector operates the reflection mirror of the illumination device with the operation panel to change the angle of the illumination light. Therefore, the case where the illumination light reflected on the surface of the glass substrate is not irradiated near the inspector has occurred. As a result, the appearance of light always changes, making it difficult to perform a stable visual inspection. Therefore, visual inspection cannot be performed based on the same standard, and the reliability of the inspection result is affected.

  In addition, when there is a physical difference such as the height of the examiner, the way the light strikes the glass substrate looks different from the viewpoint of the examiner. Therefore, when the inspection is performed by a plurality of inspectors having different heights, the inspection results may vary.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, and its purpose is to always visually inspect defects on the surface of the glass substrate on the same standard, improve the reliability of the inspection, and It is to provide an apparatus for visual inspection excellent in properties.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following means.
The invention according to claim 1 is a visual inspection apparatus for visually inspecting a defect of a substrate, wherein the substrate holder that holds the substrate, a first rotation mechanism that rotates the substrate holder, and the substrate holder A light irradiating means for irradiating the surface of the substrate held on the substrate with a light for visual inspection, a second rotating mechanism for rotating the whole or a part of the optical system of the light irradiating means, and the first rotating mechanism. And controlling the operation of the second rotation mechanism, and when one of them is operated, the other is operated in conjunction with this so that the light is directed to the inspector with respect to the substrate surface. An apparatus for visual inspection comprising the substrate holder and a control unit for controlling the attitude of the light irradiation means is provided.

  In the visual inspection apparatus according to the present invention, first, light is irradiated onto the surface of the glass substrate by the light irradiation means in a state where a glass substrate (substrate) such as a liquid crystal display is held by the substrate holder. At this time, the inspector operates the first rotation mechanism or the second rotation mechanism to control the posture of the substrate holder and the light irradiation means so that the irradiated light is directed to the inspector.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the visual inspection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit emits the light reflected by the substrate surface near the line of sight of the inspector. Provided is a visual inspection device for operating a rotating mechanism and the second rotating mechanism in conjunction with each other.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the visual inspection device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control unit operates the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism in conjunction with each other. The first rotation mechanism can be switched to a non-interlocking state in which the first rotation mechanism is operated independently, and the angle of the substrate holder adjusted by the inspector in the non-interlocking state is registered. Provided is a visual inspection device for setting a rotation angle of the substrate holder and the light irradiation means by interlocking a first rotation mechanism and a second rotation mechanism based on registered angle information.

  The invention according to claim 4 is the visual inspection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism are at least one of an X axis and a Y axis. Provided is a visual inspection device having a rotating shaft as a rotation axis.

  According to the apparatus for visual inspection according to the present invention, it is possible to always visually inspect defects on the surface of the glass substrate on the same standard, to improve the reliability of the inspection, and to be excellent in operability.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of a visual inspection apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.
As shown in FIG. 1, the visual inspection apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment is visually inspected by an inspector P for the presence or absence of defective portions (scratches, unevenness, etc.) on a glass substrate (substrate) surface G1 (macro inspection). And a substrate holder 2 having a rectangular opening for holding the glass substrate G, and the substrate holder 2 is rotated about the rotation axis X so that the glass substrate G can be easily visually observed for defects from a horizontal state. A first rotation mechanism 3 that changes the posture of the substrate holder 2 so as to rise up at an appropriate angle, and a light (macro illumination light) L for visual inspection on the glass substrate surface G1, which is disposed above the substrate holder 2, An illuminating macro illumination unit (light irradiating means) 4; a second rotating mechanism 5 for changing the posture of the macro illumination unit 4 so that the light L is incident on the glass substrate surface G1 at an arbitrary angle; The first rotation mechanism 3 and And a control unit 6 for controlling the operation of the other 5 (3) in conjunction with the operation of one of the rotation mechanisms 5 and the operation of the other 5 (3). .

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the substrate holder 2 has a rectangular opening 2 a slightly smaller than the size of the glass substrate G so that a peripheral portion outside the pattern region of the glass substrate G can be placed. It is formed in a frame shape. Further, the substrate holder 2 has a plurality of suction units 10 in a region where the glass substrate G is placed. The suction unit 10 is connected to a vacuum generator (not shown), and the glass substrate G can be fixed by vacuum suction using a vacuum generated by the vacuum generator.

The substrate holder 2 is provided on a base (not shown) so as to be rotatable about the rotation axis X as a rotation center axis. That is, on both sides of the substrate holder 2, the rotating shafts 10b projecting outward are respectively attached, and are rotatably supported with respect to the bearing portion 11 provided on the base side. A line connecting the centers of the two rotation shafts 10b is the rotation shaft X. Both rotating shafts 10b are rotated about the rotating shaft X in response to the driving force from the motor 12. As a result, the substrate holder 2 rotates about the rotation axis X while holding the glass substrate G while being supported by the bearing portion 11 provided on the base.
That is, the rotating shaft 10b, the bearing portion 11, and the motor 12 constitute the first rotating mechanism 3. The driving of the motor 12 is controlled by the control unit 6.

  In the present embodiment, the rotation axis X is described as being close to the lower side of the substrate holder 2, but the position of the rotation axis X is not limited to this position. For example, you may provide so that it may be located in the approximate center part of the substrate holder 2. FIG. In addition, the rotating shaft 10b is directly rotated using the driving force of the motor 12, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, an external force is applied to the substrate holder 2 using a jack or the like, and the substrate holder 2 is moved. It may be rotated about the rotation axis X.

As shown in FIG. 1, the macro illumination unit 4 includes a light source unit (for example, a fluorescent lamp or a halogen lamp) 15 that irradiates the light L for visual inspection, and the light L emitted from the light source unit 15. A reflecting plate 16 such as a mirror that reflects toward the glass substrate surface G1, a converging optical system (for example, a Fresnel lens, a convex lens, etc.) 17a that converges the light L reflected by the reflecting plate 16, and a converging optical system 17a A transmissive liquid crystal scattering plate 17b that scatters the converged light L.
The macro illumination unit 4 is rotated by the second rotation mechanism 5 about the same rotation axis X as that of the first rotation mechanism 3 as a central rotation axis. That is, the second rotating mechanism 5 changes the incident angle of the light L with respect to the glass substrate surface G1 by rotating the macro illumination unit 4 about the rotation axis X in response to an instruction from the control unit 6. It is like that.

  The control unit 6 controls the first rotating mechanism 3 and the second rotating mechanism 5 together so as to be interlocked with each other. At this time, the first rotating mechanism 3 and the second rotating mechanism 5 are operated in conjunction with each other so that the light L reflected by the glass substrate surface G1 enters the vicinity of the inspector P.

Next, a case where the inspector P performs a macro inspection for the presence or absence of a defective portion on the glass substrate surface G1 using the visual inspection apparatus 1 configured as described above will be described.
First, the glass substrate G is placed on the upper surface of the substrate holder 2 with the substrate holder 2 in a horizontal state. Next, after the glass substrate G is positioned at the reference position by the alignment mechanism, the vacuum generator is operated, and the placed glass substrate G is vacuum-sucked by the suction unit 10 to hold the glass substrate G.
After holding the glass substrate G, the inspector P is irradiated so that the inspector P can easily see the defects on the glass substrate surface G1 by operating the first rotating mechanism 3 or the second rotating mechanism 5 in a timely manner. Adjustment is made so that the light L is reflected by the glass substrate surface G1 toward the inspector P. That is, when the first rotation mechanism 3 is operated, the substrate holder 2 rotates about the rotation axis X, and the glass substrate G is raised from the horizontal state to an angle that is easy to observe as shown in FIG. Change (state of angle A with respect to the horizontal plane).

The control unit 6 operates in conjunction with the rotation angle of the substrate holder 2 so that the light L emitted from the macro illumination unit 4 is incident on the glass substrate surface G1 at an incident angle optimum for observation. 5 is operated to rotate the macro illumination unit 4 about the rotation axis X (in a state of an angle B with respect to the horizontal plane).
In the present embodiment, since the rotation axis X of the first rotation mechanism 3 and the second rotation mechanism 5 is common, the second rotation mechanism 5 geometrically rotates the first rotation mechanism 3. It is sufficient to rotate twice the angle. That is, after the substrate holder 2 is raised to the angle A shown by the solid line in the figure, when the angle of the substrate holder 2 is changed to A + α, the second rotation mechanism 5 rotates B + 2α.

  As described above, the visual inspection apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment operates the substrate holder 2 or the macro illumination unit 4 separately, and the control unit 6 performs angular fluctuation twice as large as the angular fluctuation α of the substrate holder 2. Since the first rotation mechanism 3 and the second rotation mechanism 5 are operated in conjunction with each other so as to be 2α, the optical axis of the light L reflected by the glass substrate surface G1 even if the inclination angle of the substrate holder 2 is changed. Is always kept constant with respect to the inspector P, so that the appearance of the light L can be stabilized. Moreover, since the rotation angle of the macro illumination unit 4 is automatically changed so that the emission direction is constant with respect to the glass substrate surface G1 simply by adjusting the angle of the substrate holder 2, the angle of the macro illumination unit 4 Adjustment is easy and operability is improved.

  In particular, in the present embodiment, since the control unit 6 reliably irradiates the light L reflected by the glass substrate surface G1 near the inspector P, the appearance of the light L becomes more constant, and the glass substrate always has the same reference. The presence or absence of a defective portion on the surface G1 can be visually inspected. Therefore, the reliability of the macro inspection can be further improved.

  The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, the substrate holder and the macro illumination unit are configured to rotate about the common rotation axis X. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the substrate holder is rotated about the first X axis to generate the macro illumination unit. May be configured to rotate around a second X axis different from the first X axis. Note that the first X-axis and the second X-axis are arranged to face in the same direction.
In this case, the rotation angle of the macro illumination unit that matches the angle of the substrate holder may be stored in the control unit in advance, and the rotation angle of the macro illumination unit may be controlled according to the angle of the substrate holder. Furthermore, a method of obtaining an approximate function and interlocking the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism may be employed.

In the above embodiment, the posture of the substrate holder is changed by operating the first rotation mechanism first, and the posture of the macro illumination unit is changed by the second rotation mechanism in conjunction with this change. On the contrary, the posture of the macro illumination unit may be changed first, and the posture of the substrate holder may be changed in conjunction with this. In either case, when the control unit activates one of the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism, it may be controlled to operate the other in conjunction with this.
In the above embodiment, the first and second rotation mechanisms are rotated about the X axis, but may be rotated about the Y axis or the XY axis.

  Moreover, in the said embodiment, although the incident angle of light was changed by rotating the whole macro illumination unit, it is not restricted to this case, Reflector plates, such as a light source part and a reflective mirror which comprise the macro illumination unit The incident angle of light may be changed by changing the position of.

In the above embodiment, the control unit always links the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism to each other. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the control unit operates in conjunction with the second rotation mechanism. It is possible to switch between an interlocking state in which the first rotation mechanism is operated and a non-interlocking state in which the first rotation mechanism is operated independently without being separated from the second rotation mechanism. You may control to change the attitude | position of a macro illumination unit on the basis of the attitude | position of the board | substrate holder adjusted in the interlocking state.
In the visual inspection device in this case, the second rotation mechanism has a power unit including a motor such as an actuator that rotates only the macro illumination unit alone around the X axis.

  When macro inspection of the glass substrate surface is performed by the visual inspection apparatus configured as described above, first, only the irradiation position variable means is operated independently in the non-interlocking state, and the height (viewpoint position) of the inspector. Accordingly, only the incident angle of light can be set in advance. In other words, the height and name of each inspector are registered at an angle that the inspector actually sees to be optimal by rotating the substrate holder and the macro illumination unit so that light is reliably emitted in the vicinity of the inspector's line of sight. To do.

  Accordingly, even when visual inspection is performed by a plurality of inspectors having different heights, the light reflected on the surface of the glass substrate can be surely directed to the vicinity of the line of sight of the inspector. Next, after registration, when the inspector's name or height is input after switching to the interlocked state, the control unit switches between the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism based on the angle information corresponding to the input inspector. The rotation angle between the substrate holder and the macro illumination unit is automatically set while interlocking.

  Therefore, unlike the conventional apparatus in which the inspection results vary depending on the examiners having different heights, the difference in the inspection results can be minimized. Therefore, the reliability of the inspection result is improved, and it is easy to use and simple.

It is a block diagram of one Embodiment of the apparatus for visual inspection which concerns on this invention. It is a front view of the glass substrate and rotation holder of the apparatus for visual inspection shown in FIG. It is a cross-sectional arrow CC figure shown in FIG. It is the figure which showed the relationship between a substrate holder and a light irradiation means with respect to a rotating shaft.

Explanation of symbols

G Glass substrate (substrate)
G1 Glass substrate surface (substrate surface)
P Inspector 1 Visual inspection device 2 Substrate holder 3 First rotation mechanism 4 Macro illumination unit (light irradiation means)
5 Second rotation mechanism 6 Control unit

Claims (4)

A visual inspection device for visually inspecting a substrate for defects,
A substrate holder for holding the substrate;
A first rotation mechanism for rotating the substrate holder;
A light irradiation means for irradiating the surface of the substrate held on the substrate holder with light for visual inspection;
A second rotation mechanism for rotating the whole or a part of the optical system of the light irradiation means;
Each of the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism is controlled, and when one of them is operated, the other is operated in conjunction with this, and the light is applied to the substrate surface. An apparatus for visual inspection comprising the substrate holder and a control unit for controlling the posture of the light irradiation means so as to face the inspector. The visual inspection apparatus according to claim 1,
The control unit operates the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism in conjunction with each other so that the light reflected by the substrate surface is emitted in the vicinity of the line of sight of the inspector. A visual inspection device. In the visual inspection apparatus according to claim 1 or 2,
The control unit can switch between an interlocking state in which the first rotating mechanism and the second rotating mechanism are operated in conjunction with each other and a non-interlocking state in which the first rotating mechanism is operated independently. In addition, the angle of the substrate holder adjusted by the inspector in the non-linked state is registered, and the first rotating mechanism and the second rotating mechanism are linked based on the registered angle information in the linked state. And a rotation angle of the substrate holder and the light irradiation means is set. In the visual inspection apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The visual inspection apparatus, wherein the first rotation mechanism and the second rotation mechanism have at least one of an X axis or a Y axis as a rotation axis.

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